Programme Officer, SB4, LACRO SROC, Belmopan, Belize

The Programme Officer will report to the Belize Liaison Officer. S/He is part of a small multi-disciplinary team, which provides technical, policy and programme support and guidance to government and CSO entities in an integrated and coordinated manner. The Programme Officer will support the implementation of the Belize Spotlight programme, with particular focus on gender based violence and Violence Against Women & Girls  
 

Duties and Responsibilities

Under the overall guidance of the Director SROC and direct supervision of the Belize Liaison Officer, the incumbent will coordinate the implementation of pillar 3 activities and will provide technical assistance to the implementation of UNFPA activities under pillars 2, 3 and 4.

Specifically, the incumbent will:

Provide technical guidance to inform the selection of implementing partners for the Spotlight Initiative and identify capacity building needs of partners and lead the coordination of technical assistance, mentoring, training and capacity development initiatives targeted to partners.

• Coordinate, oversee, and manage the execution of and provide technical support to the Spotlight activities under pillar 3 – prevention and positive social norms change, in collaboration with UNICEF and UNDP, and associated agencies (PAHO/WHO, UN Women, and ILO), including:
  • Build the capacity of schools and provide tools to prevent, identify and ensure appropriate responses to ending family violence.
  • Develop and cost a national social and behaviour change communication strategy and support implementation of key actions targeting individuals and communities to promote change in knowledge, attitudes, norms and practices to bring an end to family violence
  • Create opportunities through innovative online and mobile applications and other platforms for young people to connect with each other and have direct access to information on human rights, women’s empowerment, Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights and messages on family violence
  • Work with men and boys in formal and informal settings to  engage men and boys in critical reflection on rigid gender norms and support the modelling of positive behaviours and masculinity.
  • Implementation of the Gender Equality and Diversity Seal in public and private sector workplaces
  • Support faith-based, civil society, and community leaders to work with families to address root causes of family violence such as around corporal punishment and the prohibition of corporal punishment in the homes, adverse childhood experiences, child marriage and early unions, alcohol and drug use, sexual abuse, gender and social norms embedded in gender equality.

This includes reviewing programme activities, establishing and implementing mechanisms to systematically assess the achievement of results, conducting field visits, participating in technical and coordination mechanisms, review meetings and, monitoring evaluation missions; preparing regular inputs to status and progress reports and analysing basic factors affecting the achievement of results, recommends corrective actions and follows up on recommendations

• Ensure timely and effective implementation of UNFPA activities, ensuring linkages between pillar 3 activities (prevention) and other UNFPA activities under pillar 2 (institutional capacity strengthening) and pillar 4 (services)

• Provide support to strengthen multi-sectoral partnerships including with government agencies, civil society, UN Agencies and development partners for more effective and coordinated programme development and implementation as appropriate

• Support EU relations and EU reporting requirements, and produce periodic updates and briefs on the country situation to be used by the Resident Coordinator, UNFPA and other stakeholders.
• Identify promising practices, technical expertise and strategic opportunities relating to Family violence in Belize and identify, develop and disseminate knowledge products, lessons learned and good practices. Assist in the development editing and finalization of articles, press releases, human interest stories, speeches and other advocacy/information materials for both web-based and traditional media as appropriate
• Perform other duties as required

 Required Skills and Experience

Education:

• Advanced degree in Public Health, Medicine, Sociology, Demography, Gender, International Relations, International Development, Economics, Public Administration, Business Management or other related field with three (3) years working experience.            or
• A first level university degree with at least five (5) years of professional training/certification or experience may be accepted in place of an advanced university degree.

Experience:

• Professional work experience in family violence, gender-based violence, gender equality or communication for development programmes; experience with the social behaviour strategies is a very strong asset, as is experience in the field of sexual and reproductive health and rights and GBV with an emphasis on adolescents and youth;
• Excellent oral and written skills; excellent drafting, formulation, reporting skills, incl. dissemination of communication materials and awareness raising at the national and community levels;
• Accuracy and professionalism in document production and editing
• Excellent interpersonal skills; culturally and socially sensitive; ability to work inclusively and collaboratively with a range of partners, including grassroots community members, religious and youth organizations, and authorities at different levels;
  • Ability to lead formation of strategies and their implementation; to build and sustain effective partnerships with UN Agencies and main constituents, coordinate and advocate effectively, communicate sensitively across different constituencies; and to interact with donors, identify and analyze trends, opportunities and threats to fundraising;
  • Ability to work and adapt professionally and effectively in a challenging environment; ability to work effectively in a multicultural team of international and national personnel;
  • Solid overall computer literacy, including proficiency in various MS Office applications (Excel, Word, etc.) and email/internet; familiarity with database management; and office technology equipment;
  • Self-motivated, ability to work with minimum supervision; and ability to work with tight deadlines.